Treehaven bears become part of University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point study

8:38 AM,
Apr. 13, 2014

Katie Goplerud, right, a University of Wisconsin-Stevens Point student, keeps a black bear cub warm before weighing it as part of the Wisconsin black bear research project that took place at Treehaven on March 5. The cub was residing with three other cubs and its mother in a den at Treehaven. Behind Goplerud, on the left, is Shelby Hiestand, Wisconsin DNR biologist, who is stationed in Merrill and manages wildlife areas in Lincoln and Langlade counties.

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Mama Bear had been here before, watching the people with loud machines in their hands cut down some trees. They left big branches and brush around. "Hmm," Mama Bear said. "If I dig into this hill, I'll be warm and snug when the snow falls and the cubs come."

Mama Bear clawed deep in the ground, about 6 feet. At the bottom of the hole, she rounded out a space big enough for her to lay down and sleep. "This will be nice," Mama Bear said, yawning. She laid down in the den. It was starting to get cold outside. The leaves were down, and she could see snow ...